Why it earned this rating
Our assessment
Target Income Choice gives buyers a choice between two GLWB rider designs at the same 1.05% annual fee. The flexibility to match the rider to the buyer's income strategy is a meaningful design element.
The short version
If the choice of income timeline is the most important variable in your annuity decision, Target Income Choice gives you a structured way to pick the path that fits your situation. RetireReady's 20% upfront bonus and 12% simple rollup works better for near-term income. RetireBuild's 10% compound rollup over 10 years works better if you have time to let the benefit base grow. The tradeoff is a 10-year surrender commitment and a rider fee that comes off account value each year even before income begins.
Key facts
The full review
Is Delaware Life Target Income Choice a Good Annuity?
Yes, for someone who prioritizes income flexibility and wants to match their rider to their actual retirement timeline. This is not the best choice for someone who mainly wants accumulation, wants the shortest possible surrender period, or prefers the simplicity of a single, automatically included rider. The dual-rider design is genuinely useful, but it also adds a decision at purchase that simpler products avoid.
Why Someone Would Buy This Annuity
The primary reason is the rider choice itself. Someone who is five to seven years from income would gravitate toward RetireReady because the 20% upfront bonus and seven-year simple rollup are front-loaded in a way that works well when the deferral window is shorter. Someone who is ten or more years from income would gravitate toward RetireBuild because the compound rollup grows more efficiently over a long period. Being able to select the mechanics that match your actual situation is a real benefit.
The secondary reason is the index menu. Target Income Choice offers seven crediting strategies including participation-rate strategies on multi-asset indices from Janus Henderson, First Trust Barclays, and Franklin SG — plus a performance-triggered S&P 500 option — alongside structured Precision Portfolio presets for buyers who want a preset multi-index allocation rather than building their own.
Who This Annuity Is Best For
I think this product is best for buyers aged 55–75 who are in the planning phase before income begins and know which timeline applies to them — near-term income or long-term deferral. It fits buyers who value principal protection, want lifetime income as the goal, and can tolerate a 10-year surrender schedule because they are genuinely using long-term money.
It is less appealing for buyers who are undecided about when they'll need income (the rider election at purchase can't be changed), buyers who mainly want accumulation returns, and buyers who want the simplest possible structure. If you are unsure whether you'd elect RetireReady or RetireBuild, that uncertainty is worth resolving before buying, because the choice is locked in.
What You're Really Buying Here
You are buying a framework for converting retirement savings into lifetime income, with a built-in decision point around timing. The annuity itself is an FIA with downside protection and upside participation through index crediting. The GLWB you elect builds a separate withdrawal benefit base that grows by contractually specified amounts before income begins. When you turn income on, your benefit base and age determine the annual amount you can take for life.
Neither rider is embedded at issue — you elect one — but the product is structurally oriented around income. Accumulation is a secondary feature that supports income, not the main event.
How the Core Feature Works
Both GLWB riders use the same basic structure. At issue you pay your premium, which establishes the initial withdrawal benefit base. The benefit base then grows by the mechanism specific to your chosen rider during the accumulation period or until you start income. The rider fee of 1.05% of the benefit base is deducted from account value annually. When you are ready, you elect income, and the lifetime withdrawal percentage tied to your age at that point determines your annual withdrawal amount.
**RetireReady** adds 20% of all first-year premiums to the benefit base as an upfront bonus — applied to the benefit base, not account value — and then credits 12% simple interest annually for up to seven years. A buyer who funds RetireReady and starts income after year seven has built a benefit base meaningfully larger than their original premium, using simple-interest rollup after the bonus.
**RetireBuild** skips the upfront bonus and instead applies 10% compound interest annually for up to 10 years. Compounding at 10% for a full decade produces more than a 2.5x increase to the original benefit base, which makes this rider more powerful than RetireReady for buyers who truly wait the full deferral window. The crossover point where RetireBuild outpaces RetireReady on a $100,000 premium generally falls somewhere around years eight through ten depending on timing.
Both riders include automatic annual step-ups if account value exceeds the benefit base at the contract anniversary. Both include spousal continuation and a chronic-illness enhanced payment feature — if the annuitant cannot perform two of six activities of daily living, the annual withdrawal amount can increase by 200% for single life or 150% for joint life, for up to five years, at no additional cost. The rider can be terminated after the first policy anniversary if the owner decides not to use it.
Why the Secondary Feature Matters
The Precision Portfolio option is the most useful secondary feature for buyers who do not want to manage their own allocations. These are preset multi-index portfolios that commit the full premium to a fixed mix of index strategies at issue. Once selected, the allocations are locked in — you can transfer out on any contract anniversary but not reallocate within the portfolio — and additional premiums go to the fixed account rather than the Precision Portfolio.
The two portfolios emphasize different strategy mixes but both include participation-rate strategies tied to multi-asset indices alongside S&P 500 exposure and a fixed account allocation. For buyers who want diversification but do not want to think about annual reallocation, the Precision Portfolio approach reduces the ongoing decision burden. That is genuinely valuable for buyers who are using this product primarily as an income vehicle rather than as an active allocation tool.
Liquidity and Surrender Schedule
Target Income Choice carries a full 10-year surrender schedule declining from 10% to 1% before reaching zero in year 11. A market value adjustment applies to surrenders and withdrawals beyond the free amount. This is a meaningful commitment — buyers should plan to use this as long-term income money.
Free withdrawals are reasonably structured. In year one, the greater of 10% of total premiums or the required minimum distribution amount can be taken without penalty. In years two through ten, the standard moves to the greater of 10% of the last contract anniversary value or RMD. The death benefit passes the greater of account value or surrender value, and the MVA is waived at death. Waivers for qualifying nursing home stays and terminal illness are also available, subject to state approval.
California uses a shorter and lower surrender schedule (8.25% in year one declining to 0% by year ten), which meaningfully improves the liquidity profile for California buyers relative to the standard schedule.
Fees and Tradeoffs
The main fee is the GLWB rider charge: **1.05% of the withdrawal benefit base annually**, deducted from account value. This fee starts immediately after election and continues through the accumulation period, not just during income. On a $100,000 premium, that is roughly $1,050 per year coming out of the account value before income ever begins, and the fee base can grow as the benefit base grows through rollup credits. The maximum contractual rider fee is 2.50%.
The product itself carries no product fee, no M&E charge, and no administration charge — standard for a fixed index annuity. The implicit tradeoff in FIA crediting is that caps and participation rates are set by the carrier at renewal, and income-focused products typically offer more moderate crediting terms than accumulation-focused FIAs because the pricing support goes toward the income guarantee mechanics.
The 10-year surrender schedule is a cost in opportunity terms. Buyers who need liquidity flexibility should weigh that carefully, since 10% annual free withdrawals provide only partial access during the surrender period.
Product snapshot
| Feature | Details |
| :--- | :--- |
| Product type | Income Fixed Index Annuity |
| Surrender period | 10 years |
| Issue ages | 50–85 |
| Minimum premium | $25,000 qualified or nonqualified |
| Additional premiums | Minimum $500; max total $2M without prior approval; not accepted after any owner/annuitant turns 85 |
| GLWB options | RetireReady GLWB II or RetireBuild GLWB II (must elect one) |
| Rider fee | 1.05% of withdrawal benefit base annually; maximum 2.50% |
| RetireReady rollup | 20% bonus to benefit base on first-year premiums; 12% simple interest for up to 7 years |
| RetireBuild rollup | 10% compound interest for up to 10 years |
| Step-ups | Annual, if account value exceeds benefit base |
| Spousal continuation | Included in both riders |
| Chronic illness multiplier | 200% single / 150% joint, up to 5 years; not available in CA |
| Lifetime withdrawal ages | 51 (4.20%/3.70%) to 85+ (8.05%/7.55%), single/joint |
| Surrender schedule (standard) | 10–9–8–7–6–5–4–3–2–1–0% |
| Surrender schedule (CA) | 8.25–6.75–5.75–4.75–3.75–2.75–1.75–0.50–0.50–0% |
| Market value adjustment | Yes; waived at death |
| Free withdrawals | Year 1: greater of 10% of premiums or RMD; Years 2+: greater of 10% of last anniversary value or RMD |
| Death benefit | Greater of account value or surrender value |
| MGSV | 87.5% of premium at 1–3% |
| State availability | All states except New York; CA variation applies |
| Index strategies | 7 indexed + 1 fixed; includes S&P 500 cap, participation, and performance-triggered; plus multi-asset indices |
| Precision Portfolios | 2 preset multi-index allocations available at issue |
| Annuitization | Available; maximum annuitization age 100; single-life, period certain, joint and survivor |
Carrier snapshot
Delaware Life Insurance Company is based in Zionsville, Indiana. It holds A- ratings from A.M. Best, S&P Global, and Fitch — a consistent triple-A-minus showing that reflects solid claims-paying ability without reaching the top tier. Delaware Life has a notable place in FIA history as the issuer of the first fixed index annuity, which launched under the Keyport brand in 1995. The company has been active in the income FIA space and updated Target Income Choice in 2025 with the RetireBuild and RetireReady rider pair. Delaware Life is authorized in all states except New York.
Final take
Target Income Choice is a well-constructed income FIA that delivers on its name. The RetireReady / RetireBuild structure is a genuine decision tool that helps buyers match their rider mechanics to their actual timeline, and both riders are priced the same at 1.05%, which simplifies the comparison. Delaware Life's A- triple rating, the chronic-illness multiplier, and the flexible index menu round out a product that does most of what an income FIA should do.
The caution is the 10-year surrender schedule and the fact that the 1.05% rider fee runs from day one — not from the day income begins. A buyer who defers income for a decade pays roughly 10.5% of their original premium in accumulated rider fees before income starts, assuming the benefit base tracks close to the original premium. That is not unusual for an income FIA, but it is something to understand clearly before buying.
For buyers who genuinely plan to use this as long-term income money and who have a clear sense of their income timeline, Target Income Choice is a good fit. For buyers who are less certain about timing or who want shorter surrender exposure, a different product will likely serve better.